Can opener



Jan. 31, 1928. w. F. PoLsoN CAN OPENER Filed Jan. '7, 1926 JW 53ml yawn@ i Patented Jan. 31, 1928.

y taken UNITED `STATES A f 1,657,842 PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM F. POLSON, BUFFALO, NEW YORK. y

CAN OPENER.

Application led January 7,l 1926. Serial No. 79,897.

My invention relates to improvements in `can openers, and more particularly to t-hat type in which a circular cutter is associated with a guide roller.

One of the objects of my invention'is, to provide a can opener in which a circ-ular cutter and a guide roller are carried by a single element, and means provided for relatively moving the two.

Another object of my invention is, to provide a can opener in which a supporting member is arranged to carry both the circular cutter and the guide roller and wherein an operating lever pivotally connected to said supporting member serves to impart movement to said circular cutter for moving the same toward or from said guide roller and for clamping a can between the two.

A further ob]ect is, to provide a can opener of simple construction, comparatively few parts and one in which maximum leverage is provided so that the device mais; be operated by a person comparatively wea in gripping power.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a can opener of the type mentioned in which relative movement of the cutting and guiding parts is attained by rectilinear movement of at least one ofsaid arts.

With the above and other objects in view to appear hereinafter, my invention conssts in the novel features of construction and in the arrangement and combination of parts to be hereinafter described and more particularly pointed out the subjoined claims. l

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of my improved can opener, showing the same in connection with a portion of a can illustrated in dotted lines. Y Fig. 2 is a topplan view of the same.

u Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view thereof.

g on line 4-4, Fig. 2, the same `being shown in connection with the upper portion of a can and in the act of cutting the top of the can from the remainder of the same.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged transverse section taken on line 5-45, Fig. 4. p y

Fig. 6 is a detached perspective view of the cutter slide..

Fi 7 is a longitudinal section taken on line u-7, Fig. 4. Y

Reference being had to the drawings in 4 is an enlarged longitudinal section detail, the numeral 8 designates a can having a top or cover 9 secured to the upper end thereof by means of an over-hook seam or otherwise, forming an upstanding flange 10 around the upper end of the can and above the upper surface of the top or cover; cans of this kind being invariably provided with a depression 11 at the top.

My improved can opener, which in the emtom 16 thereof, while the handle portion 14 hasits sides merging into the bottom along curved lines.

At the junction of the handle 14 to the head 13, the sides of these parts are extended outwardly to formears 17 and an operating lever 18 is disposed between the ears and pivotally connected thereto, a pivot 19 being passed through said operating lever and through said ears and being headed or upset at the outer sides of said ears, as at 20. The operating lever 18 is also formed of sheet material and in cross section is of U-formation. At its pivot-end, however, it is provided with an actuating ltongue 21, the extremity of which is doubled upon itself, as at 22. The support 12 and operating lever 18 constitute the body of the device onwhich other parts of the device are supported, or to which other parts are connected.

Surrounding the pivot pin 19 are the convolutions of a trigger spring 23, the ends `f2.4, 25 of said spring lying against the inner sides of the handle 14 and the operating lever 18, respectively; said spring, by reason of its being coiled around said pivot and having its end portions directed outwardly in diverging lines and in contact with said handle and said operating lever, tends to keep said lever distantly spaced from the handle 14, with the result that the actuating tongue 21 is swung to the extreme of its movement Vin one direction. Arranged within the head of the support is a cutter slide 26, which is of a width to have its edges bear slidably against the sides 15 of said head. Said cutter slide is provided with a tapped opening 27 near one end thereof, and near its other end with two upwardly curved lips 28 rising above the uppensur;V

face of said slide and spaced apart to receive the rebent end 22 of the actuating tongue 21. The head of the supportis` provided in its bottom 16 with a longitudinal slot 29 over which the. cutter slide is positioned.

30 designates a circular cutter havingl a cylindrical hub 31 serving as a pressure roller, the circular cutter SO being in reality an outstanding flange on the roller having its edge beveled, as at 532, or otherwise fashioned to form a sharp cutting edge. This cutter is held in position on the head of the device by means of a screw 335 the shank of which is reduced at its inner end to form a shoulder 34, the reduced portion thereof being threaded and entered into the tapped opening 27 of the cutter slide 26, while the shoulder 34 thereof bears against the under or inner face of said slide. The enlarged portion of the shank of the screw extends through the elongated opening 29 in the head while the head of the screw, designated by the, numeral 35, bears against the under side of the cutter. By reason of this screw being threaded into the cutter slide, it is non-rotatable and movable with the cutter slide, and the cutter is adapted for rotation on the shank of said screw.

36 designates a guide roller which has its eripheral edge roughened. I, however, pre erably provide the peripheral edge with a circumferential groove 37 and the por tions of said edge at opposite sides of the groove are knurled or otherwise roughcned for a purpose to appear hereinafter. This guide roller is fastened onto an operating stem or shaft- 38 having a reduced portion 39 litt-ing into an opening in the head of the support and a further reduced portion 40 is provided at the inner extremity of this shaft. or stem, which is threaded and enteredinto a tapped opening formed axially in said guide roller. This guide roller is alined with the hub or pressure portion 31 of the circular cutter and is rotated by` the stem or shaft 38 which is provided at its outer end with a handle 41, preferably formed of a. flat strip of metal having an opening 42 ccntral- 1y between its ends, into which a portion of the metal forming the stem or shaft is forced to retain said handle thereon. This is accomplished by providing the stem or shaft with a slot 43, inserting the handle therein so as to conceal the opening 42 of said handle and then form a depression 44 on the exterior of said stem or shaft under pressure so as to force a stud-like portion 45 into said opening.

The cutter is normally spaced from the guide roller in the manner shown in Fig. 1, and with these parts in suchposition, the

operating lever 18 is in its outermost position, it eing so maintainedby the spring 23- The space between the c1rcular cutter and the guide roller is sufficiently large to permit the Harige 10 of a can to be easily passed between the two and upon depressing the operating lever 1S against the action of the 4spring 23, the tongue 2l at the inner end of said lever will force the cutter slide 2G lengthwise within the head, with the result that. the cutting edge of the circular cutter is driven through the side ol' the can underneath the seam forming the flange 10, as clearly shown in Fig. 4. With the parts so disposed the handle 41 of the stem or shaft;

rectilinear movement and imparted to the.

circular cutter, greater freedomA in action and a more positive cutting effect is secured than where the circular cutter depends on a swinging n'ioveinent to enter and. retain it in the wall of the can while the can rotates or the cutter rotates around the can.

Upon relieving the operatinglcver 18 of the hand pressure exerted, said lever.` is caused to return to its normal or outermost positioinas shown in Fig. 1; and by reason of its positive connection with the cutter slide 2G, said slide is also returned to noru mal position, with the result thatv the can opener is therefore onewhich is controlled with perfect freedom with one hand and conveniently operated with the other; this being due to the fact that the sprinv 23 makes it unnecessary tograsp the two ian. dles of the device, by which is meantthe free end portion of the support and the :free end portion of the.v operating lever, andcausing them to move away from each other, which cannot otherwise be practically ac@ complished, except with the use of both hands, one applied to each handleythis being the common practice for releasinga can opener from a can among hand-supported can openers nowl in use, due tothe factthat the rotatable cutter isinvariably. wed led into the wall of the can.y remains hooker to some part of the can, or is frictionallyfretained in cutting condition.

The guide roller will last for a comparte tively long period of time, and the cutter may be sharpened until the llangedportion thereof becomes worn to a point closeto the hub 31, after which a new cutter can. be easily placed in position by` reinovinggthe screw 33 and Vthen removing the cutter and re lacing it with another.

aving thus described my invention, what I claim 1s:- 1. A can opener comprising a support Vhaving a straight-lined head and a curved handle portion, said support being formed of sheet material and beingv substantially of U-ormation in cross section, a lever pivotally secured between the sides of said support and having an actuating tongue at its inner end, a spring for maintaining said lever in normal position, a cutter slide within said head having a pair of spaced lips between which the actuating tongue of said lever is positioned, a circular cutter carried by said cutter slide, a guide roller carried by said head in spaced relation to said circular cutter, and a stem having a handle and to which said guide roller is secured.

2. In a can opener, two pivotally connected members movable toward and from each other, one of said members being eX- tended beyond the other to orm a supporting head, two co-operating rotatable elements relatively movable and having their axes in planes parallel with the plane of movement of said pivotally connected members, one ofsaid co-operating rotatable elements `being operatively connected with one of said pivotally-connected members so that it is moved relatively toward and from the other rotatable member upon corresponding movements of said lastfmentioned pivotally-connected member.

3. A can opener, comprising two pivotally-connected members movable relatively in a vertical plane, two rotatable elements adapted to co-act for cutting operation and f each having a handle, two rotatable elecarried by at least one o said pivotally- 40 connected members to move relatively in a horizontal plane upon relative movement of said pivotally-connected members, and means for rotating at least one of said rotatable elements.

` 4. A can opener comprising a su port, two rotatable elements carrried by sai suppot and relatively movable in a horizontal plane, one of said elements being a cutter and the other a guide roller, anv operating lever pivoted to said support for movement in a vertical plane and having o erative connection with one of said rotata le elements, and means for rotating one of said rotatable elements. .Y

5. A canopener comprising a body having two relatively movable co-o eratin members pivotally connected toget er an mentsco-acting to cut through a wall of a can and supported by said body, one of said elements beinga cutter movable in a hori c zontal plane from inoperative to operative position and reversely, and at least one of said two co-operating members being move able in a vertical plane from inoperative to operative position and reversely, the relative movements of said (zo-operating members and the movement of said cutter from inoperative to operative positions being efi'ected by manual effort, a spring to cause relative movement of said co-operating members and movement of said cutter from operative to inoperative positions, and

means to rotate one of said rotatable ele:

ments. l f 1, s; In testimony whereof I aix my signature.

WILLIAM F. POLSON. 

